Did you change your Part D plan for 2014?

Anyone who changed their Part D dug plan or their Medicare Advantage plan for 2014 needs to pay attention to a few things.

1) Did you get your new id card for your plan? If not, you need to call your broker or the insurance company to find out why you don’t have your new card.

2) When you go to the doctor or the pharmacy you will need to show your new card and make sure they bill the correct insurance company.

3) If you have your id card, you should make a copy – in case you lose it.

A client who changed her Medicare Advantage plan (effective January 1) told me she used her old card to fill her prescriptions last week – and the pharmacy accepted the card. Uh, oh. This is going to create a hassle over who pays the bill.

Another client emailed me last week saying she is confused because she has two sets of id cards and plan information. She changed her Advantage plan, but has received a new card and new booklets from her old plan. This is pretty common because the old Advantage plan likely prepared their mailings before they got cancellation notices from Medicare. So they sent out cards and info to members who were no longer members as of January 1st.

I had another client tell me she went to the pharmacy and was told that one of her drugs is not covered by her Part D plan. Whaat? I looked up the drug and can clearly see it is covered as a “preferred brand”. I told Linda to go back to the pharmacy and, if she gets the same “not covered” response, she should call the customer service number on the back of her Part D plan card. She can then pass her phone to the pharmacist and have him talk to the Part D plan customer service rep.

PLAN CUSTOMER SERVICE CAN HELP

Customer service for Medicare Advantage plans and Part D plans can be very helpful and can be reached through a number on the back of your plan id card.

Last fall I had a client (who was new to Tucson) call me to say she had lost her Medicare Advantage card – and she needed to fill her prescriptions that day. I called her plan’s customer service number and asked them to help her. The customer service rep called the woman and then called the pharmacy to provide the information needed to fill her prescription. I was very impressed at how helpful (and quick) the customer service rep was.

If you lose your card, you won’t have the customer service number for your plan- so make a copy and put it someplace safe.

I got an email yesterday from a client who said she lost her purse. She has a doctor’s appointment this week and doesn’t have her Medicare Advantage plan id card. I can get her id number for her, but I wouldn’t need to do this if she had made a copy of her card.

Denise

Denise Early is an independent insurance broker in Tucson, Arizona. She is interested in policy and the politics of Medicare. She enjoys telling the stories of people she meets and sees herself as an advocate for her clients. She served in the Peace Corps and has a Masters degree in International Management.

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Disclaimer

Medicareblog.org is not affiliated with Medicare or Social Security. Posts on this blog are meant to provide information and insight into many aspects of Medicare. Denise s a licensed insurance agent in Arizona.